


Distant Thunder

by Waxwing



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-16
Updated: 2018-08-09
Packaged: 2019-06-11 07:45:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,851
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15310764
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Waxwing/pseuds/Waxwing
Summary: Even though he feels as though he should, Bruce can’t bring himself to push Tony away.





	1. Bruce

There are many stereotypes concerning what an Alpha SHOULD be and what a Beta SHOULD be and what an Omega SHOULD be and Bruce thinks that the Avengers as a group contradict nearly all of them. For instance, Thor (who is a typical alpha in every way save his reluctance to assume positions of authority) and his pale, slender, vain, psychologically erratic adopted brother are BOTH alphas. Natasha Romanov, with her iron will, unflappable demeanor and ability to think on her feet in even the tensest of situations is an omega (albeit a tragically sterilized one.) Despite the deep emotional connection she shares with Clint Barton (beta) the two would never even consider becoming bonded. Clint is, in fact, married to a female alpha who stays home with the kids while he goes out and risks life and limb in a dangerous job. 

Steve, the commanding, sensible, fatherly leader of the group is an omega, had in fact possessed omega hormones in such high amounts that his omega-ness was practically a disability (that super soldier serum probably saved his life.) Steve had, of course, become bonded a few months ago, to Bucky, his needy, emotionally fragile alpha. The Vision cannot be classified but rather seems to shape himself to Wanda’s (omega) needs. Bruce himself is an alpha but most who had never met The Other Guy would assume he’s a beta. Of course the team is occasionally joined by kind, gentle, emotionally intuitive risk taking, thrill seeking (beta) Peter Parker but usually only when cocky, snarky, fiercely independent, distrustful of authority figures (omega) Tony Stark, says it’s ok. 

It’s still an unfortunately common practice for children who appear to be developing into betas to be given hormone therapy to force their development in either the alpha or omega direction but Richard (beta) and Mary (omega) Parker had been adamant that their son was never to be subjected to such treatment and, when the task of raising him had fallen to them, his aunt (an omega who’d been born a beta) and uncle (an alpha) had honored that wish. 

For understandable reasons, they’re joined even less often by T’Challa, the Black Panther and first EVER omega king of Wakanda. He seems to like to surround himself with female alphas, which make up an unusually high percentage of Wakanda’s population in comparison to the rest of the world. This is chalked up by most historians and genetic anthropologists to the fairly recently discontinued Wakandan tradition of selectively breeding soldiers to increase the odds of their producing female alpha children in the beliefs that female alphas are more naturally predisposed to aggressive temperaments. T’Challa’s father, T’Chaka (an alpha), had made discontinuing the practice his first official act as king, arguing that that belief had no scientific basis and that the way little alpha girls were treated in order to condition them to be more aggressive was inhumane to the point of barbarism. His devotion to the cause had been best exhibited in the way he treated his own children, allowing his alpha daughter to pursue her interest in the sciences and his omega son to train as a warrior. 

\----

It was perhaps due to his subconscious internalization of stereotypes that Bruce had taken it as a given that his...condition would prevent him from ever becoming bonded with an omega. Sure, it was still PHYSICALLY possible but that didn’t mean it was a good idea. There are times when he doubts his ability to control HIMSELF to such a degree that he deliberately isolates himself from everyone he loves out of fear that he might hurt them, so he’d have to be a REAL asshole to expect anyone else to voluntarily submit to him. More than an asshole, a MONSTER...and he is NOT a monster... he just looks and acts like one sometimes. 

Consequently, when Tony seems determined to get closer to him from the instant they meet, Bruce forces himself to believe that it’s purely out of curiosity and professional respect and...maybe a little pity. He does not, for a second, allow himself to entertain the notion that Tony Stark might find him attractive. Bruce doesn’t follow celebrity gossip but it’s impossible to avoid at least some degree of familiarity with Tony’s reputation. Tony is often criticized by conservative news outlets as one of those “uppity modern omegas.” Tony dates athletes and models and actors and dumps their asses if they even so much as MENTION bonding to him. 

Tony is handsome and charming and (lets not forget) LOADED. Tony can have anyone he wants, he wouldn’t waste himself on a middle aged scientist with a WMD level anger management problem. He also tells himself that Tony doesn’t mean anything by the little, flirtatious jokes he’s always making. That’s more or less the way he is with everyone, Pepper and Roadey (both alphas) just roll their eyes at it. Granted, when he does it with them it’s usually not accompanied by the lingering eye contact and close physical proximity that it is when he does it with Bruce but...still. 

Even though he feels as though he should, Bruce can’t bring himself to push Tony away. Partly because he knows they’re going to be working together in the future and doesn’t want to make things awkward and partly because he doesn’t exactly have an overabundance of friends and there are plenty of things to like about Tony that have nothing to do with his being an omega. Also, wouldn’t trying to distance himself from Tony be as good as admitting that he suspected their might be something between them? And he wouldn’t want to do that because he certainly suspects no such thing. So they become friends...good friends...friends one of whom occasionally (jokingly of course) propositions the other and seems genuinely (but DEFINITELY not actually genuinely) disappointed when the other doesn’t even notice... (pretends not to even notice.) 

They hit a snag in their (definitely not more than) friendship one night when everyone is hanging out at Avengers Tower chatting and drinking. Well, the others are drinking. Bruce doesn't trust himself to drink even after Thor (ever the good natured “bro”) assures him that he wouldn't let The Other Guy do any damage if he did show up. Bruce, Steve and Vision have bonded over their shared plight as perpetual designated drivers. 

Honestly, Bruce doesn't mind not drinking. These casual team get togethers are one of the few social situations he actually enjoys so he wants to be mentally present for them. At first they talk as a group but as the evening wears on and the energy wanes they split off into little clusters scattered around the room. Steve has lured Thor off to gently question him about how things are going “at home” (wisely not directly approaching the subject of his brother.) Wanda, Natasha and Clint are engaged in a spirited debate the topic of which Bruce hasn't managed to catch. Vision and Rodey are attempting small talk with Bucky... clearly expending great effort on the task. Just as Bruce begins to wonder where Tony is, he feels a hand on his arm. 

“I’ve got something to show you.” Tony whispers (why is he whispering?) while wrapping a hand around his wrist and leading him from the room. Just that little bit of skin to skin contact sends a primal jolt through Bruce’s nervous system, he does his best to ignore it. Something else happens that’s a little harder to ignore...way, way in the back of his mind he feels Hulk...stir. It’s not like usual, not like he’s trying to take control, just like he’s suddenly paying attention. Well that’s...new. 

He expects to be lead into the lab and he is, then he’s led throughout the lab, through another room and out onto a balcony. Once outside, Tony spends a few moments just leaning back against the railing, the lights of New York shimmering behind him, and looks at Bruce as though contemplating how to proceed. Bruce doesn’t think he’s ever seen Tony look so vulnerable before...he doesn’t like it. He scrambles for something, ANYTHING, to break the silence and goes with the first thing that comes to mind. 

“Whatever happened to that...free energy thing you were doing?” 

It occurs to him immediately that this might not be a good topic, that it might be a sore spot for Tony. He’s relieved when the other man responds confidently. 

“Oh, it’s definitely still happening.” He turns to look at the city, like a benevolent king surveying his domain. “It’s gonna’ take longer than we originally planned but all the pieces are still there. We’ve just gotta’ put them back into place.” 

Bruce assumes the “we” Tony is referring to is himself and Pepper Pots. 

“How is Pepper?” 

“Good, stressed out, overworked...just how she likes it.” The omega smirks. “She’s also been seeing someone lately but she won’t let me meet him...probably because she knows I’ll think he’s not good enough for her...though, to be fair, that is a reasonable expectation since nobody’s good enough for her.” 

Bruce forces a laugh and resists the urge to tell Tony that HE is good enough for Pepper. For a while Bruce had actually been banking on Pepper taking Tony’s attention off of him. She’s an alpha, Tony’s an omega, the two are undeniably close...just not THAT way...unfortunately. 

"That actually... kinda' ties in with why I brought you out here..." 

“I’m flattered that you think I’m good enough for Pepper but I don’t think she’s into me.” Bruce makes a final, faltering attempt at keeping this from going where he knows it’s going.

“No...she’s not.” Tony sort of laughs but doesn’t really commit to it, his gaze is still fixed firmly on the horizon line. He takes a deep breath and then... “I am.” 

Bruce freezes up and the ensuing silence must stretch on an unusually long time because eventually Tony looks over as if expecting to find himself alone on the balcony. 

“Tony...” Bruce finally manages. “How much have you had to drink?” 

He immediately regrets it because he knows that that IS a sore spot for Tony. The billionaire's “problem drinking” doesn’t happen when he’s surrounded by friends. No, these days when Tony over does it, it tends to be after something particularly terrible has happened and he’s found a way to blame himself for it (he’s WAY too good at that) and he’s assured everyone over and over and over again that he’s FINE (anything to get them to leave him alone) and then the next morning someone (usually Pepper) finds him passed out (usually in the lab.) That had been why Pepper had convinced Bruce to take up permanent residence at the tower...because that way there’d always be at least one person there...just in case. 

Tony bristles and Bruce immediately feels like shit. 

“I’m sorry...” 

“No, no!” Tony laughs breathily and smiles in a way that’s not quite natural. “I’m just insulted that you think I could even be drunk when all I’ve had tonight is beer...I mean, I’m not a college freshman.” 

“Tony, I really AM sorry...” 

“It’s fine but...you could have just said that you’re not interested.” 

Bruce knows he should take the out. Right now he could just lie and say that he doesn’t want Tony and that would be the end of it. Sure, things would be weird between them after but (contrary to popular belief) Tony is an adult who knows when to back off and how to take no for an answer. When all is said and done, they could probably even salvage their friendship...Bruce just has to tell ONE lie... one BIG lie. He tries but the words just won’t come out. Instead he winds up going the stupidly honest route. 

“I’ve never felt the way I do about you about anyone before...I didn’t think I ever would.” 

Hope flares in Tony’s eyes (it’s BEAUTIFUL) but then it’s replaced with trepidation...because he’s not stupid. 

“There’s a ‘but’ coming, isn’t there?” 

“Christ, Tony...” Bruce drags his hand through his hair, can’t bring himself to meet the omega’s eyes. “Do I even need to say it?” 

“Not really but it wouldn’t hurt for you to elaborate a little, big guy.” 

Bruce does his best to ignore the way his body reacts (EVERY SINGLE TIME) to the strange tenderness with which Tony infuses that nick name...especially because it’s not JUST him reacting to it. 

“Are you worried that...he’s gonna’ hurt me?” 

“No, actually.” Bruce glances up quickly to ensure that Tony is still safely on the other side of the balcony. He is, he knows Bruce doesn’t respond well to being crowded. “Do you remember... during the battle of New York...when you fell back through the wormhole and the Other Guy caught you out of the air?” 

“Of course.” 

“Well...that was the first time that he’d ever taken deliberate action to prevent someone from coming to bodily harm and, even back then, I couldn’t help but think that it had to mean something.” 

“...but?” 

“But just because he woudn’t hurt you doesn’t mean that he wouldn’t snap someone else in half for so much as looking at you too long.” 

“He doesn’t do that now.” 

“He doesn’t see you as HIS right now... I haven’t been in a relationship with anyone since the accident that made me...like this. I don’t know how a thing like that would affect the Other Guy... it might not even be safe for us to be having this conversation.” 

“So is you’re plan just to live like a monk the rest of your life because the Hulk doesn’t know how to share?” 

“I don’t know...” Bruce’s throat tightens and he feels a buring at the backs of his eyes. “...maybe.” 

Tony takes a step toward him...but just one. He’s got that stern, pensive expression he gets when he’s solving a problem in his head. Bruce loves that expression so much that it’s hurts to look at it under the curcumstances. 

“With all do respect, Dr. Banner, that is bullshit.” Tony takes a deep breath before going on. “Sorry...but...even if you’re not gonna’ be with me, you can’t just...give up on ever being happy.” 

Bruce has to make a conscious effort not to bitterly laugh at that. 

“Happiness isn’t even on my radar... it feels like ALL my time and ALL my energy just goes into... damage control and, that’s another thing. You deserve to be with someone who isn’t a complete...fucking mess ALL the time.” 

“Maybe I like the mess.” Tony challenges. “I mean, it’s not like we just met, I know how you usually are.” 

When Bruce doesn’t immediately come up with a refutation, Tony presses his advantage. 

“And I think that I...well...we...” He gestures back inside. “Have gotten pretty good at Hulk rangling and we already spend most of our evenings together.” 

“In the lab.” 

“Yeah but your bedroom is just off the lab.” 

Tony smirks suggestively and Bruce has to look away again. When he speaks, his voice is barely audible. 

“...I’m worried about that part too...” 

“You mean that we couldn’t have kids on account of the radiation? Because that doesn’t bother me. In case you haven’t noticed, the Starks don’t exactly have a steller track record in the parenting department and Spidey is such a handful...” 

“Not that! The part that happens IN the bedroom.” 

“...oh.” 

Tony goes quiet, the stern, pensive look comes back. 

“So...you haven’t been with anyone? This whole time?” 

Bruce can’t bring himself to answer, he looks away, out over the city, to hide how wet his eyes are. His hands are shaking...shit. 

“...it’s ok.” The omega’s tone is soft, it causes a slight slowing of Bruce’s heart beat that he knows is purely the result of a chemical reaction in his brain. He can also feel the Hulk in there again but, again, it’s...weird... just a rumble, like distant thunder...or the purr of a big cat. 

“So we go slow.” Tony goes on in that same tone, stepping closer to Bruce, within arms reach now. “And if you think you need to stop... we stop.” 

Bruce finally looks back up at Tony and for some reaosn finds himself noticing that his omega...THE omga is just slightly taller than him. 

“Besides... it’s not like I’ve never risked injury in the bedroom before.” 

“Don’t even joke about that.” Bruce means for that to come out angry but there’s no force behind it. He does, however, take a step closer to the other man and the momentum from that somehow turns into a kiss. Caught off guard, Tony freezes up for just a second before cautiously sliding his hands up Bruce’s chest to the sides of his neck. At some point the hand that Bruce had wound around the balcony railing finds it’s way to Tony’s waist and pulls him closer. It would read as a dominate gesture if Bruce weren’t trembling so violently.


	2. Steve

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "During his brief...shameful period being used as a propaganda tool during the war, Steve had been forced to present as an alpha."
> 
>  
> 
> OR
> 
>  
> 
> Steve looks back on all his regrets.

During his brief...shameful period being used as a propaganda tool during the war, Steve had been forced to present as an alpha. His handlers had told him that the reason for this was because he was meant to be a role model for soldiers and the majority of soldiers were alphas. Steve HATED himself for it but at the time he’d unquestioningly accepted that justification. After all, Peggy way an alpha... Bucky was an alpha. He’d already felt guilty that the late Dr. Erskine had “wasted” his life’s work on him so he wasn’t inclined to argue. The irony of the fact that Erskine had been an omega hadn’t even occurred to him at the time. 

Anyway, he’d done his patriotic duty which in this case had included feigning an attraction to omegas and allowing himself to be doused in a chemical meant to mimic alpha hormones before every public appearance. Since the artificial alpha hormones weren’t convincing enough to work on omegas who spent any extended period of time around him, the reuse had required the cooperation of the omega dancers who’d accompanied him in his stage shows. They were the type of omegas who’d be viewed with disgust by many in the modern omega equality movement which is why Steve can’t, in good conscience, count himself as a part of that movement. He had succumbed to the same societal pressures that they had, so why should he be viewed as a “trail blazer” while they are viewed as “part of the problem”? Besides, those omegas had been his FRIENDS, they’d been smart, compassionate, GOOD people who (like him) had desperately wanted to serve their country and had seen this as the only way that they could. 

Of course Steve had eventually stopped presenting as an alpha but that had been a function of necessity. When he actually started serving along side those alpha soldiers his mask had been impossible to keep on. He couldn’t get suppressants on the front lines, let alone fake alpha musk. Luckily, the combination of the extreme stress he was under and the fact that his body was still adjusting to the affects of the serum had been enough to keep him from going into full blown heat but the unmistakable omega scent had still been there. Some of the alphas had had difficulty taking him seriously but that had only lasted until they saw what he could do. 

Steve’s being an omega had only briefly become significant again after he’d lost Bucky. His fellow soldiers had been, he thinks, more eager to console him than they would have been had he been an alpha. Not that he’d been in any state of mind to acknowledge it at the time and, even if he had, he wouldn’t have complained about it. He’s NOT an alpha. Alphas and omegas are equal but they are NOT the same. To the end of his days (whenever that may be) he will believe that that is a GOOD thing. 

He wishes he could explain this to Tony but there isn’t really a “right” way or time to bring that sort of thing up, is there? Especially not when things between he and Tony will always be kind of... tense. Tony wishes he was an alpha, mostly because his father (whom Steve had known personally) had been less than subtle about how he also wished that Tony were an alpha. Steve had never known Howard as a father but it hadn’t really surprised him to learn that. Though they’d eventually become friends, Howard had initially been one of those Alphas who’d had trouble taking him seriously. He HAD been surprised to learn that Howard had always spoken highly of him to other’s which was why Tony had been hostile toward him when they’d first met. Steve can only imagine how it must have BURNED Tony to know that his father could “forgive” Captain America for having been born an omega but couldn’t “forgive” his own son. 

Steve would also like to ask Tony if learning that his father had been born a beta had made him feel better or worse about the whole situation but, again, there’s no right time. It probably didn’t help that Tony had learned about it the same way the rest of the world had, from a popular Netflix documentary about the life of Howard Stark. Legal representatives of the Stark estate had filed a lawsuit against the makers of the documentary but Tony himself had pulled the plug on that when his own private investigation had revealed everything in it to be true. The coverup had been so extensive and so well executed that Tony’s mother had not even known. Some question rather or not Howard knew but their’s no way of sorting that out now that the man is dead. 

The whole thing had started with an investigative journalist noticing that Howard Stark had exhibited many of the symptoms that have just recently been connected with “Chemically Assisted Physiological Development Therapy” (C.A.P.D.T. colloquially referred to as “Caping.”) Caping is the process by which a beta is turned into either an alpha or an omega (usually an alpha in most western countries) via a series of synthetic hormone injections beginning at the onset of puberty. Possible long term side effects of “Alpha Caping” include hypertension, migraines, body dysmorphia, bouts of inexplicable aggression, chronic anxiety, manic depression, substance abuse problems... 

The list seems to grow every day. Steve doesn’t remember Howard as ever having seemed anything other than comfortable in his own skin but he also remembers that Howard was extremely image conscious. According to the (verified accurate) documentary, many of the items on the list (really a SHOCKING number of them) are explicitly discussed in correspondence between the elder Stark and his personal physician who had prescribed a combination of sedatives and amphetamines “to be taken as needed.” Their was, of course, wild speculation about rather or not the physician knew Howard’s “big secret” but Steve thinks that that’s neither here nor there. 

At the time Caping was considered a routine procedure, performed as a matter of course. Sometimes a doctor would start it without even informing the parents (medical laws were different back then) but more often than not it was at the request of the parents because NO ONE wanted a beta child. Steve can remember being taught in HEALTH CLASS that “denying” a beta child hormone therapy was as good as literally, physically torturing it everyday for the rest of it’s life and he would LIKE to say that he never believed it...he REALLY would...oh boy, would he. 

The sad fact is that, at the time, that was considered the PROGRESSIVE stance. At the time their had still been religions that taught that betas didn’t have souls and sociological ideologies that taught that betas should be treated as chattel. Steve had never even met a beta at the time, he couldn’t have conceived of people like Clint Barton or Peter Parker. He’s not proud of it but at times he’d taken comfort in “knowing” that someone had gotten dealt a worse hand than him in terms of A/B/O hormones. 

Before the serum, Steve had had what’s known as hyper omegism, a disorder caused by an overabundance of omega hormones in the womb during the final stages of gestation. It effected his physical development, making him small and weak and prone to illness, but it had also affected his body’s ability to regulate hormones. Heats had been hell. It had been less common for omegas to take suppressants back then because doctors were more reluctant to prescribe them. Steve’s family doctor had insisted he start taking them when he was only thirteen, after the third time his mother brought him in running a fever so high that it could have damaged his brain. 

He supposes it would have been harder to get suppressants had it not also been emphasized to him that he should NEVER attempt to have children. His body, he was told, would likely be too weak to survive a pregnancy and would definitely be too weak to survive child birth. It was at one point suggested he be sterilized but his parents had staunchly refused to even consider it and Steve had carried that refusal into adulthood. In retrospect, he’s not even sure why he’d refused...maybe because it would have felt too much like admitting defeat. 

He was also in love with Bucky Barnes. 

James “Bucky” Barnes was very, very alpha in what in Steve's opinion were all the best ways. It seems stupid now but at the time he’d assumed that, of course, Bucky would want children some day and if he gave up his ability to have them there would be no hope of their ever winding up together. So he’d held on to his ability to procreate and, with it, the slender hope that he’d someday be the sort of omega he though Bucky deserved. It had seemed like the serum had put everything right but Steve hadn’t had long enough between when he’d been injected with it and when he’d gotten frozen to see if he was finally going to have a normal reproductive cycle. He’d naively assumed that he an Bucky would both make it through the war and then things would calm down and then, if all really had been put right, he’d FINALLY tell Bucky how he felt. 

When Bucky had bizarrely found his way back into Steve’s life, professions of love had been the last thing on his mind (WAY down the list under saving Bucky from himself and saving Bucky from everyone else.) Even when Bucky was finally out of immediate danger the circumstances still hadn’t felt right. Bucky was psychologically vulnerable and Steve didn’t want to take advantage of that. He’d been taken advantage of enough already. So Steve had resolved to set his own feelings aside (he'd had plenty of practice) and simply be there for Bucky, in whatever capacity he needed. 

It hadn’t occurred to him that the alpha might be holding back similar feelings for similar reasons.


	3. Bucky

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bucky wants to say no, so far the only person who’s been in his apartment that wasn’t there on some specific business is Steve and it for some reason feels... wrong to open the door to someone else. 
> 
> OR
> 
> Bucky just wants to do something for Steve.

Bucky had TECHNICALLY been a member of the Avengers for a year when Steve proposed to him. He emphasizes the “technically” because he barely interacts with them outside of when he’s specifically summoned for missions. Steve visits him a lot at the apartment S.H.I.E.L.D. has put him up in just a few blocks away from the tower but he has minimal interaction with everyone else in the group. He’s not surprised that Stark doesn’t offer him accommodations in the tower, like he has with everyone else and he certainly doesn’t blame the guy. By now Stark has accepted the fact that Bucky wasn’t in control of his actions when he did what he did but you can only be so civil to someone after WATCHING them kill your parents...no matter how bizarre the extenuating circumstances. 

Anyway, it’s probably for the best that he’s not expected to fraternize...his social skills aren’t exactly up to snuff. He can handle visits from Steve but that’s different...that’s Steve. Even after all the ugliness, being with his childhood best friend still feels like the most natural thing in the world...these days it’s nearly the ONLY thing that feels natural. He doesn’t question it when the First Avenger starts fixing up his apartment. Steve brings curtains to replace the bed sheet that Bucky had tacked over the window, Steve brings bedsheets that don’t feel like sandpaper, Steve brings bath towels and kitchen towels and a set of dishes. Gradually Bucky starts to feel more like a person living in an apartment and less like a tool being kept in a box until it’s needed again. 

One evening Bucky invites Steve to stay for dinner and then remembers that he has almost no food in his apartment. They order a pizza and Steve offhandedly says that the next time he visits he could bring dinner with him. Bucky tells him he doesn’t have to but he says that he WANTS to and that’s that. He’s learned by now that there’s little point in arguing with Steve when he’s put his mind to something and, anyway, it’s not like he’s all THAT opposed to the idea. It’s just the alpha in him that balks a little at the thought of having an omega “providing” for him... he tells himself to stop being stupid... it’s just Steve. 

The next time Steve visits him he brings bags of groceries with him. Bucky, who hadn’t expected anything more complicated that takeout Chinese, feels a little guilty. His guilt is increased when it becomes obvious that Steve has little to no actual cooking experience. He feels like he doesn’t deserve to have anyone go to any effort on his account, let alone expend effort outside of their comfort zone. Despite the omega’s repeated insistence that he can handle it, Bucky winds up helping him. Neither of them has done this before but between the two of them they manage to make something at least edible. 

Bucky’s not particular about what he eats, it’s not like he’s had the opportunity to develop any specific culinary preferences, but he finds himself feeling inexplicably particular about what Steve eats. A part of him also thrills at the thought of their being something that he can do for Steve that Steve can’t easily do for himself. Then he does something crazy and desperate... he texts an Avenger that isn’t Captain America. It’s the first time he’s used the contact list that S.H.I.E.L.D pre-programmed into his Stark Phone. 

Peter Parker comes the next day after school lets out. He explains youtube tutorials to Bucky and shows him how to access the site on his phone. He also cautions Bucky against reading the comments, calling him “‘Mr. Barnes” the entire time even after Bucky tells him there’s no need for that. Before leaving, he’s meeting with a friend at a nearby Starbucks (which Steve has told him is the name of a coffee shop), the kid shyly asks if he can touch Bucky’s arm. Bucky obliges, figuring he owes him SOMETHING. The potential consequences of his actions don’t occur to him until hours after the kid leaves but, sure enough, those consequences arrive late the next morning. There’s a knock on his door and he opens it to find Tony Stark looking irritated. 

“Hey, Barnes.” The omega says dryly. 

“Stark.” 

“How ya’ been?” It’s asked with the tone of a rhetorical question so Bucky doesn’t bother with an honest answer. 

“...fine...” 

“Good...good... can I come in a minute?” 

Bucky wants to say no, so far the only person who’s been in his apartment that wasn’t there on some specific business is Steve and it for some reason feels... wrong to open the door to someone else. It’s only because he can’t think of a good excuse to say “no” that he steps aside. Tony makes a brief scan of the room with his eyes and Bucky is surprised that no catty remark follows. 

“What was so important that you personally came all the way here?” 

“Well, first off, ‘here’ is only two blocks from the tower and, second...” He takes out his phone and shows Bucky the screen but puts it away before Bucky can process what he’s seeing. “I was just wondering what you and Peter Parker could possibly have to talk about and, third, why the hell do you even have Parker’s number?” 

Bucky’s socially atrophied mind races to keep up and, again, he’s surprised when Tony actually waits for a response (all be it with the irritated look still on his face.) 

“S.H.I.E.L.D. gave me the number...” 

“Fury of Coulson?” 

“I don’t know...whoever programmed my phone.” 

Tony seems to be mulling this over and Bucky takes the opportunity to go on. 

“I texted the kid to ask him about something on the internet and he said it’d be easier to come show me.” 

“Of course he did..” Tony lowers his head and pinches the bridge of his nose.“This may come as a surprise but Steve has known about the internet for a while now, you could have just asked him.” 

“I couldn’t ask Steve.” 

Tony gives him a look that’s simultaneously questioning and vaguely accusatory. 

“I’m working on a surprise for Steve.” 

“A surprise that fifteen year old boy was able to help you with?” 

”He was showing me Youtube...” 

“Youtube?” 

“Cooking tutorials.” 

“For Steve?” 

“I want to make dinner for Steve.” Bucky feels himself blush as he says it...like he’s revealed something private...to this man who hates him. 

There’s a long pause during which Tony looks at him as though he’s just given him a riddle to solve. He scans the room again. 

“Are you and Rodgers...living together?” 

“No.” For some reason it gives Bucky satisfaction to know that Stark doesn’t know where Steve goes when he’s not at the tower. “He just made dinner the last time he came over so I wanted to return the favor.” 

Another long pause. 

“Did they not have take out in the 40’s?” It’s only a HALF joking question. 

“They did.” For some reason the reminder of how much younger the other man is than him calms Bucky’s nerves a bit and he almost laughs at how extremely non-domestic Tony is for an omega. There’s another long pause during which Stark seems to be trying to think of an excuse to stay angry. 

“What did you think I was doing with the kid?” Bucky asks softly. 

“...I don’t know exactly...but you can’t pretend that it was unreasonable for me to be concerned.” 

“...no...I can’t. 

The silence is especially charged this time but then Tony looks at him almost pityingly. 

“I would just prefer that you not spend a lot of time alone with the kid... if anything happened, I would feel responsible.” 

Bucky can’t help but wonder if Stark has ever given Dr. Banner a similar talking too...somehow he doubts it. Of course he doesn’t say any of this outloud. 

“...fine.” 

Stark makes a cold departure but a few days later a package is delivered to Bucky’s apartment. In it, he finds a laptop (Stark brand) as well as a print out containing the address and password for an email account that’s been started for him and the screen name and password for his new youtube account. He’s been pre-subscribed to several cooking channels. Waiting in his inbox is an email from Natalie (an intern at Stark Industries), explaining that Bucky should contact her if he has any further tech questions. 

Bucky’s not sure if he’s meant to interpret this as a kind gesture or some sort of elaborate warning. He also has reservations about using accounts that Stark (or, more realistically, someone who works for Stark) set up for him on a device made by Stark’s company now that he knows that Stark is apparently somehow keeping track of which Avengers contact each other and when...he wonders if Steve knows. Then again, maybe he’s only keeping track of who contacts Parker...or maybe he’s only keeping track of who Bucky contacts. 

In the end, he supposes that if Stark is going to track his internet activity, he could probably just as easily do it on his phone. Anyway, it’s not like he plans on doing anything suspicious anyway, he just wants to cook for Steve. 

The next time Steve comes over, Bucky contemplates telling him about the laptop and asking him if he knows about the texts but he can’t think of a lead in to either of those topics that doesn’t require him to spoil the surprise. He’s not ready to test out his cooking skills on a human subject yet but that’s ok, Steve convinces him that they should go out to eat. When Steve mentions that the place he’s picked out is just a short walk from the apartment, Bucky suspects that the walk was the whole point. He goes out very little these days (mostly when summoned by the Avengers or S.H.I.E.L.D.) and lately Steve had began to express concern about what that might be doing to his mental state. He’s right, of course, but Bucky hates talking about it. It seems ridiculous to him that he can keep his head in the middle of a battle field but get’s anxious when among normal people going about their every day lives. Steve bought him a book about anxiety disorders (which he read cover to cover because STEVE gave it to him) and talked to Mr. Coulson about finding him a psychiatrist. Coulson was unexpectedly sympathetic. 

As they walk to the diner, Bucky reaches over and grips Steve’s hand as if on reflex. He thinks about letting go but then feels Steve’s hand close around his. It feels right, like the most natural thing in the world. When they arrive, it immediately becomes obvious why Steve chose this particular destination. The place looks like it was built in the 40’s and hasn’t been renovated a single time since. The sparse clientele appear to be mostly elderly people...Bucky reminds himself that those “elderly people” are the same age as him and Steve...they’ve just been allowed to age naturally. He’s always stuck between pitying and envying them. 

The hostess (a dead eyed teenage girl with an awkwardly placed bandage on her arm that’s clearly covering a tattoo) seats them in a booth at the back of the room at Steve’s request. Bucky expects them to be stopped at least once on their way through the room (this is Captain America’s key demographic after all) but they aren’t. Steve has developed the habit of not shaving during “down time” and Bucky finds it amusing that all it takes to render him completely unrecognizable to the average civilian is a little facial hair. No one notices Bucky as long as he keeps his arm covered, why should they? 

Once they’re settled and are waiting for their orders, Bucky takes advantage of the natural break in conversation to ask a question. 

“Steve...do you...trust Tony Stark?” 

Steve seems to have to seriously contemplate the question before answering. 

“...it depends on the circumstances...why?” 

“Nothing...he just comes across as a little...paranoid sometimes.” 

“Yeah.” Steve sighs in a put upon way. “...well that’s because he is.” 

Steve looks down at the table and then back up at Bucky, concerned. 

“Did something happen between you two?” 

“No.” Bucky finds himself in the unique position of not being sure if he’s lying. What exactly HAD happened between he and Stark? 

“If he’s been bothering you, just let me know and I’ll talk to him.” 

Again the alpha in Bucky balks at the thought of an omega having to defend HIM, against another omega no less. He tries to ignore it. 

“No, no...it’s fine... I mean... I can understand why he wouldn’t trust ME.” 

“I know, but if he can’t be civil to you, the least he can do is stay away from you.” 

It occures to Bucky that that’s what Stark had been doing...until he’d fucked it up by contacting Parker. Shit... he’s such an idiot. 

“You know what...never mind.” Bucky murmurs. 

“Never mind?” Steve arches a brow and for a moment Bucky can’t help but think how beautiful he is and there’s a little pain like a splinter in his chest. 

“It’s probably nothing.” 

“Probably.” It’s not a full on concession and Bucky can still see the gears turning behind Steve’s eyes. There’s definately a talking to in Starks future... shit.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm trying to make progress on another story but haven't been able to because this keeps going through my head.  
> There will be at least one more chapter.


End file.
